February 27, 2008

Tutorpedia Delivers Free Tutoring Services to Low-Income Students

by ssavage

SAN FRANCISCO, Feb. 27 /PRNewswire/ -- Tutorpedia, one of the region's fastest growing tutoring companies, announced today it has signed contracts with two Bay Area school districts to provide tutoring services to nearly 50 low-income middle school students. The tutoring company will provide these services free of charge to students in San Francisco Unified School District and Ravenswood City School District, paid for by the districts at a discounted rate as part of Tutorpedia's comprehensive Supplemental Education Services (SES) initiative.

"Our School Site Council selected Tutorpedia over two competing agencies due to the type of service they provide," said David Herrera, principal of Cesar Chavez Academy in East Palo Alto. "Tutorpedia offers our students the same one-on-one support that more economically advantaged students might receive, giving them the dedication and attention they need to succeed at this crucial stage in their academic lives."

Tutorpedia started working with Cesar Chavez Academy in early February with 30 students who are in danger of failing or falling further behind with their class work. Tutors are meeting with students to identify specific achievement goals in math and English-language arts, and they are developing a specific plan of action for the remainder of the year. Tutors will begin to set up initial meetings in March with 11 students at Visitacion Valley Middle School, home of 2008 National Principal of the Year, Jim Dierke, in San Francisco.

"Our primary mission is to keep students current in class, focusing primarily on basic reading, writing and math skills so they don't fall further behind," said Seth Linden, Founder and Director of Tutorpedia. "The goal of our SES initiative is to seek out students who are eligible for the funding and provide them with free access to our one-on-one tutoring services, making sure all students -- regardless of socioeconomic background -- receive the personal dedication and attention they need to succeed academically."

Since the passage of No Child Left Behind (NCLB) in 2003, public schools that have not met Adequate Yearly Progress (AYP) for two straight years are required to contract outside providers -- called Supplemental Educational Services -- to improve their students' academic performance, specifically in math and language arts. Title I funds shoulder the burden of these costs, and individual school districts determine the amount of money allocated to each student. The California Department of Education approved Tutorpedia to be an SES provider in twelve Bay Area school districts in May 2007.

With the two recent contract wins, Tutorpedia will provide 1,054 hours to 30 students at Cesar Chavez Academy in East Palo Alto and approximately 250 hours to 11 students at Visitacion Valley in San Francisco. The total value of the contracts exceeds $65,000 for the remainder of the 2007-2008 academic school year.

In addition, Tutorpedia is working with other SES-eligible students at Chipman Middle School in Alameda Unified School District, and at Parkway Heights Middle School in South San Francisco School District. Tutorpedia is also partnering with Students Run Oakland, a non-profit that trains teenagers from inner-city high schools to run a marathon and improve their academic performance.

About Tutorpedia

With more than 25 tutors specializing in math, science, English, history, foreign language, and test preparation, Tutorpedia provides customized, comprehensive academic services to students around the San Francisco Bay Area. For more information please visit http://www.tutorpedia.com/ or call (415) 948-1585.